Customer Review
- Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2016This book tells the story of a great journey into the unknown, conceived by a unique historical man - Alexander the Great (356 - 323 B.C.)
Harold Lamb's "Alexander of Macedon" reads as a grand Hollywood blockbuster combined with Shakespearean drama. Due to the time period c 300 BC, the author understandably relies on story telling, mythology, and gap filling, but there's a great deal of factual detail in descriptions of people, events and adventures. You meet intriguing characters - Olympias (Alexander's mother), Aristotle (Alexander's tutor), Demosthenes (a philosopher), Ptolemy (friend and general), Phillip of Macedon (Alexander's father) and others. The book describes the conquests and battles of Tyre, Issis, Arbela etc as well as great foes from opposing forces.
The author's descriptions of Alexander make him more human than God - they personalise him. It's interesting to note his transformation from the shy, studious non-violent boy to the belligerent conqueror. Although we see that he becomes rash and impulsive, you get the sense that he retains shrewdness in his actions borne out of his early nature, prolific reading and experience.
- "The heroes have to pay the price for great deeds by suffering"..
- "Only the man in the saddle is free. The man in the house is a prisoner".
- "Sir, if there is one thing above all others a successful man should know, it is when to stop." (said to Alexander by Coenus, a subordinate commander).
Listening to this as an audio book, it was occasionally hard to place events, and easy to get lost in the narrative. I suggest that the reader (or listener) either read the print format, or have a good grasp of the history and cultures of the time - else you may find yourself confused. Otherwise, it was an informative re-telling of a great true story.
